Week 7 Blog 14: Not So Different

Last year Motorola brought up a complaint (aka lawsuit) about a specific wireless mobile device technology that turns out to be not so new or "smart". If you haven't noticed yet, when you bring your smartphone up to your ear, the screen automatically turns off, acknowledging that you're talking on the phone and preventing any unintentional dialing. This can be achieved through an IR proximity sensor located in phones that detects anything that comes near it.
There already exists a third party patent for this technology, but Motorola claimed that their own patent claimed in 1999, pertained to modern touch screens rather than "physical push buttons". With this claim, Motorola accused Apple of infringing its own patent. While dismissed at first, the U.S. ITC has decided to review their decision on this matter as well as other possible infringements on Motorola's patents. I think this is a pretty far fetched claim for Motorola, to differentiate patents on mobile phones like this. I'm actually curious how they even got their 1999 patent in the first place when there already was a patent for phones with "physical push buttons", but if they succeeded in acquiring that patent before, they just might be able to enforce it today against Apple.

http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/02/19/itc-to-review-decision-that-cleared-apple-of-infringing-on-motorola-patents

Week 7 Blog 13: the New iDea

Apple has recently applied for a questionable patent which will add a newer and a lot safer function than a refrigerator magnet for its Smart Cover for their iPad line. They are proposing filling these screen protectors with their own batteries, enabling them to charge the iPad or the iPad mini when it's not in use. Taking advantage of the magnetic hinges that attach to the mobile device, the Smart Cover can "wirelessly" charge an iPad through an induction transmitter and receiver.

Of course, wireless charging is definitely not a new technology. Over the past few years many engineers have developed a way to charge multiple mobile devices by simply placing them on a single charging station. Technically, what Apple is proposing is indeed wireless charging, but I honestly don't understand why they don't just call it an external battery. The biggest catch to these portable wireless charger Smart Covers is that they will also need to be charged every once in a while. They will not be any different from the typical battery cases people equip their smartphones with. I wonder how efficient this technology will be, and honestly, I don't think these will hit the market anytime soon. Thousands of patents never become real products, and I think Apple is just calling dibs on an interesting idea that's not quite complete yet.

http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/03/14/apple-proposes-on-the-go-wireless-charging-via-ipad-smart-cover-with-built-in-battery

Week 6 Blog 12: Behold

One of the main issues of the Apple vs Samsung patent war has been the similarity between their phone designs. A rectangle with rounded corners and a large touch screen. The design of a smartphone, the look and the feel of the device, is responsible for attracting the consumers at first sight. From flip phones to slide phones to the current large touchscreen smartphone, mobile devices have had several significant turns in their looks over the past decade or so. Recently, smartphones all have become so similar that people were thinking we have reached the acme of phone design that companies like Apple and Samsung would fight over the credit.

However, Blackberry has just filed a patent for a very interesting new design with a 180-degree hinge. From the first look it may seem quirky and may not seem like the most attractive design, but this just may be the newest revolutionary look of our future phones. Honestly, I think this is a nice refreshing move from Blackberry who's just re-entering the smartphone market with its new BB10 OS. We will have to wait and see if Blackberry will introduce this model anytime soon.

http://www.ubergizmo.com/2013/02/blackberry-files-patent-for-a-180-degree-hinge/

Week 6 Blog 11: Unlock Me

Last October, the US Congress officially removed the act to protect mobile phone unlockers called the Digital Millenium Copyright Act. Ever since the government lifted the DMCA, many technology enthusiasts have expressed their concern that consumers should have the right to access the full extent of their mobile phones. After over 114,000 people raised their voice through a petition, the White House has finally responded to the public, and it seems like the government is on the geeks' side.

Ever since 1998 DMCA has allowed creative minds like George Hotz (the guy who unlocked the first iPhone who also happens to be from my high school) to reach for their phones' full capabilities not restrained by the carriers' limits. With the Obama Administration actually expressing their positive response of the unlockers' concern, we probably won't see immediate action, but at least it will be interesting to see the government playing a role in this issue.

http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/20/engadget-primed-phone-unlock/
http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/04/white-house-phone-unlock/

Week 5 Blog 10: the Hollywood Inquisition

Often we see and post movie screenshots or gif's of our favorite TV shows everywhere on Facebook or Tumblr blogs, but we've never really had a problem with any significant copyright issues. Maybe because they just don't care or maybe because they can't control every little image or video clip files swarming the social media. However, Hollywood doesn't seem to like distribution of their movie or TV show content through apps on our phones. Even though I'm not particularly interested in downloading an app just to get some latest Hobbit or Avengers wallpapers for my smartphone, I always see those mobile apps on the app stores. Hollywood does have copyrights for whatever they film, and now they want to shut down those who want to distribute them.

Today there are officially hundreds of thousands of apps available to whoever holds a smartphone, and it is probably nearly impossible for Apple or Google to regulate every app out there and scrutinize the legal details. I honestly don't know how much it really matters to the film industry to have pictures of movie scenes on your phone other than help market it, but Hollywood believes these apps should pay licenses to distribute this content. With stricter ruling like this example of hunting down smartphone apps from a pool of nearly a million, Hollywood seems to continue to battle today's constantly evolving digital world.

http://www.fastcompany.com/3006450/fast-feed/hollywood-takes-its-copyright-fight-rogue-mobile-apps

Week 5 Blog 9: Oops

Following the latest updates on the war between Apple and Samsung, federal Judge Lucy Koh has nearly halved Apple's winnings from Samsung's 14 patent infringing devices, from $1.05 billion to "just" $599 million. Apparently, the jury comprised of 9 people took into account Samsung's profits from sales of these 14 devices while calculating compensation cost, and this made the $401.05 difference. The Judge specified that when it comes to utility patent infringement, Samsung does not need to reimburse Apple for its profits.

I think it's interesting to see how they rule design and utility patents separately. Design and utility have been the two main topics of discussion throughout this war, and even though people may think Samsung copied everything from Apple, it's been more about the design aspect for Apple. The look and feel of the phones, from rectangles with rounded corners to the simplicity of a few tactile buttons, have been the heat of the discussion, and while Samsung phones look very similar to the iPhone, Apple never had that strong of an argument in terms of the function of the phone and how it works because Samsung has already had a strong background in technology. Don't forget Samsung countersued Apple for patent infringements in wireless communications and camera phones. The focus of Apple's argument was about the resemblance of the phone design, and even though they recently asked for more monetary compensation as well as banning the sale of Samsung devices, it seems they won't even be getting as much as they thought they were getting. I wonder what the jury were thinking when they realized this.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/connieguglielmo/2013/03/01/apples-award-cut-in-half-in-samsung-patent-case-judge-calls-for-new-damages-trial/